Photo: TCP04 · CC BY 4.0Fewer people are out of work in Whitehall (0.2%) than in 98% of U.S. towns
At home: 4% of workers have no commute at all (Michigan 14%). Whitehall grades B− for jobs and income and B− for walkability. About one in five work in Whitehall itself; outside it, Muskegon draws the most (14%, 13 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Whitehall stands out on work
Whitehall has far more jobs than workers
Whitehall has 4,015 jobs, 3.5 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 6,100 people are in town, 89% more than the 3,200 who live here. Day and night ↓
Whitehall makes and builds things
63% of the jobs based in Whitehall are in goods: factories, construction and farms. Across the jobs Whitehall residents hold, wherever they work, it’s 31%. The jobs ↓
Commutes from Whitehall are quick
The average trip to work takes 12 minutes, against 24 across Michigan. That’s about 92 hours a year less on the road than the typical Michigan worker, and quicker than any town next door (17 to 21 minutes). Time on the road ↓
Few Whitehall workers work from home
Only 4% of workers work from home, against 14% across Michigan. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2021, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; 2021 is the newest year Michigan has published.
Why Whitehall gets the Jobs & income grade it does
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Whitehall is better than 48% of U.S. towns, #417 of 701 in Michigan. Unemployment holds Whitehall’s grade up; the poverty rate pulls it down (16.3%, U.S. 12.5%).
The commuting and job counts on this page are Census LEHD 2021: Michigan reports later than other states, so its newest year is two years behind.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Whitehall could be anywhere from C+ to B+.
In and out of Whitehall on a workday
On a workday 957 residents head out to work, 208 work right here, and 3,807 people come in from elsewhere.
About 6,100 people are in Whitehall on a workday afternoon, 89% more than live here.
3.4 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2021, primary jobs.
63% of the jobs in Whitehall make or build things
4,015 jobs are based in Whitehall.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Whitehall, 2011 → 2021: 3,274 → 4,015. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2021.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Whitehall’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Each way, about 12 minutes from Whitehall
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 3.9 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Whitehall workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,216 commuters (the 4% who work from home are left out). Across Michigan: 86% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The towns that send workers to Whitehall
Where Whitehall clocks in
14% of workers
5% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
How many miles Whitehall commutes
About 20% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2021.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
In Whitehall, most people drive to work
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Whitehall is more walkable than 55% of U.S. towns, #224 of 701 in Michigan. Both inputs place Whitehall near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,264 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 5.2% of Whitehall households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Whitehall’s commuters take a bus or train.
How Whitehall ranks: 2,378th of 4,698 U.S. towns of 2,200 to 4,300
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenilworth IL | 2,437 | $250K | 2.1% | 4.0% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Belle Meade TN | 2,621 | $250K | 1.4% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 21 | Franklin MI | 3,134 | $194K | 2.8% | 2.0% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 139 | Village of Grosse Pointe Shores MI | 2,533 | $190K | 2.7% | 3.5% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 155 | Lima Township MI | 4,215 | $119K | 1.5% | 2.1% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,376 | Wayne Township PA | 2,404 | $74K | 4.6% | 8.0% | 2% | B− |
| 2,377 | Oakland WI | 3,215 | $95K | 12.6% | 7.1% | 3% | B− |
| 2,378 | Whitehall MI | 3,205 | $61K | 16.3% | 0.2% | 18% | B− |
| 2,379 | Dallastown PA | 4,198 | $64K | 7.3% | 6.0% | 2% | B− |
| 2,380 | Geistown PA | 2,263 | $64K | 6.9% | 5.2% | 3% | B− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,698 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Whitehall, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
The towns around Whitehall
The biggest share goes to Montague (5%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Whitehall workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whitehall | – | B− | B− | 12 min | $61,169 |
| Whitehall Township | 2% | C+ | C+ | 19 min | $79,375 |
| Montague Township | under 2% | B− | C+ | 17 min | $90,885 |
| Montague | 5% | B+ | B− | 18 min | $66,750 |
| Fruitland Township | under 2% | B+ | C− | 21 min | $91,076 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Whitehall’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2021, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Whitehall: questions
What is the median household income in Whitehall?
$61,169 (±$12,633) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Whitehall?
16.3%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Whitehall?
12 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 4% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Whitehall work?
18% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Muskegon (14%, 13 mi), Montague (5%, 1 mi), Grand Rapids (5%, 46 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Whitehall walkable?
Whitehall is more walkable than 55% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 7.3 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Whitehall without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 5% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Whitehall, from the people who make the trip.
More of Whitehall
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2021, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.